#MONSTERMONDAY : O'BRIEN. A MONSTER? I've pulled one from the Cushing Gallery of Rogues this week, that goes back to a time before he had even dipped a toe in the waters of 'petrifying pics'! Andre Morell's O'Brien is at the centre of the story of Orwell's classic tale of the world gone to hell in a bucket, ruled by one Big Brother, leaders and others, who use cruelty and torture as their primary method of control. O'Brien is relentless once he gets our man Winston Smith played by Cushing, strapped to a table, in order to, through torture, make Winston "perfect," and to "save" him. But such is the 'power of love' Winston proves a difficult nut to crack..'My poor friend, you are almost well!'..and so with the help of the contents of 'Room 101', O'Brien plays his last card...
'You once asked me what was in Room 101. It is there we have the means to root out the last lingering deception. What happens in Room 101, is the worst thing in the world. It varies from individual to individual. It can be death by burning, burial alive..or something quite trivial, not even fatal...In YOUR case, we both happen to know 'What The Worse Thing in the World'...happens to be....!'
WHAT FOLLOWS SHOCKED the tv audiences of the live 1954 broadcast on Sunday 12th December, and also scored the highest tv rating in the UK since Queen Elizabeth's II Coronation! But furious critics and watchdogs complained and campaigned for the second live performance of the play, a few days later to be canceled. Michael Barry head of drama at the BBC refused to concede, the broadcast went ahead and recorded for posterity.
NOTE: JUST SIX DAYS AGO, (Tuesday) the New York Times announced that ' George Orwell's famed dystopian novel of life in a totalitarian state, was suddenly No. 6 on Amazon's bestseller list. On Monday, too, the book hovered between No. 5 and No. 7 on that same bestseller list'. . . It's worth noting that this isn't the first time "1984" has seen a sales spike in recent years. The book also hit Amazon's bestseller list in 2013 after Edward Snowden revealed the extent of the National Security Agency's surveillance program.
WE AWAIT THE RELEASE of the BFI REMASTERED blu ray of Peter Cushing's BBC production of 1984, Andre Morell, O'Brien and all.. THREE times the release has been announced, three times it has been canceled. Rumors put Orwell's estate to blame, for allegedly blocking the release (??) One would have thought that the BFI would have looked into rights issues before embarking on a costly remastering? Maybe that isn't the reason at all? Anyone one would think there's a force who doesn't want us to WATCH it...for whatever reason?? Are they WATCHING us too?
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